I am looking for a video card to run three monitors, it could be hdmi, dvi or vga. I want the three monitors to show an extended desktop but as three different desktops with maybe different resolutions, so when i maximize something it should be maximized only in one monitor.

The information seems confusing, I think eyefinity tricks the OS to make it looks like one big display. I am sure I dont want this.

So my question(s) is, is there a video card in the market that support 3 displays without eyefinity? Or can I use an eyefinity enabled card ( with one active display port) to run three monitors and disable eyefinity from the driver settings or something?

2 Answers
2

In fact, what you want is really simple, you just need 2 graphics cards. One of them can be an onboard card it doesn't matter, then you plug 2 monitors on one card, and the third one on the second card.

What you want is the default way for windows to manage multiple screens, and if for a reason it doesn't, you just set it up by selecting expand my desktop on your 2 other monitors exactly where you set up your resolution.

You only need 1 powerful graphics card, the one with your middle screen on for the games, as the other card is not affected by your gaming. Also, it doesn't have to be the same card or slots, I mean it could be a PCI-Express card with a normal PCI card, or an onboard card like I said.

By the way my resolutions are 1280x1024 for both sides 17"(4:3) , and 1920x1200 for the middle 24" (16:9).

I’ve heard all of the monitors need to be the same resolution for AMD Eyefinity technology to work. Is that true?

It’s partially true. AMD Eyefinity technology is a brand name that actually describes three distinct functions:

1-Hardware support for three or more monitors attached to a single
graphics card.

2-Software support to independently configure and run
each of those displays.

3-And software support to combine the
resolutions of all of those displays into one big resolution.

At a
basic level, many users like AMD Eyefinity technology for the first
reason: connecting more than two displays is no longer a challenge as
it has been in the past. And whether you run Linux, Microsoft®
Windows® or Mac OS®, each operating system works seamlessly with AMD’s
hardware/software to connect and configure multiple displays.

Assuming for a moment that you never perform any additional
configuration once the monitors are connected, these displays are
running in what’s called “extended mode.” Monitors do not have to be
the same size or resolution in this mode, and you should feel free to
rearrange your games and applications across the extended displays as
you see fit.

The primary drawback to extended displays is that a game or video
cannot readily be maximized to take advantage of all the displays at
the same time, which is where AMD Eyefinity technology’s SLS mode
steps in.

Single Large Surface (SLS) mode is activated when you create an AMD
Eyefinity technology display group in the AMD Catalyst™ Control
Center. SLS mode combines the resolutions of all the connected
displays, and then essentially “tricks” the operating system into
believing that there is one display with that large combined
resolution.

From the above, I think I should be fine with an Eyefinity-capable adapter if I dont enable the SLS (single large surface).